Wings of Change
by SapphireMoonbeam-TheWingedWolf
Summary: Arthur, Merlin, Gwen And The Knights Enter An Enchanted Claring While On A Hunt. It Casts An Irreversible Spell On All 8 Of Them Which Has Prominent Effects. How Can They Return To Camelot Now? A Girl Helps Them Out And Give Them Good Advice.T For Cusses. Check My Profile For Poll - 'Sequal or No'


**A/N – Hey guys! If any of you have started reading either Human Minds or How His Life Changed; I will finish them but it's gonna take a while cause I have my exams! I have one chapter almost finished for Human Minds, so after I post that, the update that will follow will complete the story, even if it is 2 or possibly 3 chapters. This is just a little one shot to try and lift my little writer's block, so it probably won't be very good.**

**Oh and just to let you know Arthur, Gwen and The Knights know about Merlin's magic in this and no one else and Uther is alive, sane and actually accepts Gwen's relationship with Arthur (Le Gasp)**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- Yeah I totally own Merlin, because I would be writing on FAN fiction if I did.**

* * *

_**Wings of Change**_

No PoV

This was not a position Merlin had ever seen himself in.

It had been a beautiful, sunny day in Camelot, and Arthur had called for a small hunting party, which Gwen decided she would join. Uther has seen them off early that morning from his balcony overlooking the centre courtyard. It had been going well; the sunny weather had all the deer and rabbits out of the burrows and hidden caves to enjoy the summer heat.

That is until they had come across a small clearing.

They often stopped here on their regular hunting trips. It was well hidden and was unused as far as they could tell. However as soon as the Arthur, the Knights and Gwen had entered the meadow teaming with beautiful flowers of unusually vibrant colours, they had sensed something was off. Those flowers had never been there before.

It was only when Merlin entered the circle, and gasped, that everyone realised something was definitely wrong. They had all turned to the sorcerer, knowing full well that he could sense the disturbance, when a blinding flash had shone from the grass and the flowers released a glittering substance…

…this had then proceeded to surround each of them. They all passed out feeling a sharp pain between their shoulder blades.

Merlin was the first to regain a slight bit of consciousness; enough to hear the argument. Two feminine voices were shouting, throwing insults back and forth. The first voice he heard was deep and scratchy, almost as if it was from disuse but with venom which made it clear that the person the voice belonged to was just an evil woman who most likely had magic. The second voice was soft and melodic, yet held the stinging bite of white hot anger.

All he caught of the argument was the second person was scolding the first for doing something to the crowned prince of Camelot and his friends, to which the first voice just cackled. Then the presence of magic and a bitter and harsh wind blew through the clearing, indicating a transportation spell.

Merlin thought that both of the women had left however, the second person indicated she was still here through cursing vehemently that the "Stupid witch" has gotten away and that "She would pay dearly for this irreversible mess".

That got Merlin's and the awakening prince, knights and lady's attention.

Merlin was most coherent, so he tried to get up, only to fall back down again when a sharp pain jolted across his upper back. This allowed him to fully awaken and so he slowly opened his eyes to be met with the brightest blue orbs he had ever seen, which were streaked with incredibly prominent silver and were full of nothing but concern and the slightest trace of anger, though not directed at him.

"Hey there, are you okay?"

Merlin stared at the girl who had spoken in such an angelic voice for a second while he assessed how he felt, "I'm fine… I think. What happened? All I remember is stepping into the clearing, a sense of powerful magic and then… nothing"

She sighed, "Unfortunately, I do, and I apologise that I could not prevent this from happening. The witch who did this was revived for one purpose, and once it was fulfilled, she became spirit once more" seeing the look of panic on his face she added, "Do not worry young warlock, your friends are safe. However you have all experienced a slight change of appearance"

'Why do I get the feeling that she is under exaggerating that "Slight" change of appearance?' thought Merlin as he considered her words, "What exactly do you mean by slight appearance change?"

She looked slightly uncomfortable now, "Uh well…why don't I help you stand up and see for yourself?" she held out her hand in a friendly gesture; he took it and found he was slightly off balance for some reason, like there was more weight on his back. Once he was on his feet however, thoughts of finding out about the change went out of his mind as he took in the whole appearance of the girl before him.

She was beautiful and seemed to radiate a glow similar not to sunlight, but the beams of the moon; a silvery pure kind of glow that only those with magic could possibly hope to achieve. Not only that but it was clear she wasn't human, if the large, almost pure white wings jutting out from her back were anything to go by. The tips of the bottom feathers were all different shades of blue, green-blue and purples. They were unfurled, so you could see the wingspan and how there was the occasional silver feather. On top of her head were a large pair of pure white cat ears which contrasted with her midnight black, knee length, wavy hair, which was adorned with flowers similar to those in the clearing. There was also a pure white cat tail twitching from side to side behind her, which was adorned with a huge blue, purple and silver bow, which had a bell in the middle if the tinkling sound was anything to go by.

She was medium height, and had a perfect hour glass figure, and she was wearing a strapless dress, which was quite short, and reaching only to the middle of her shins, which was unheard of.

Merlin analysed all of this in only 2 minutes before his mind went back to her wings, and then the extra weight on his back which seemed to have no source. And then his eyes widened in realisation and he turned his head to glimpse at his back…

…or what would have been his back if it wasn't for the pair of velvety black wings the jutted out from between his shoulder blades, where he had felt a sharp pain before passing out. He almost passed out again when he saw the wings.

They were plain, contained no hint of any their colour but black. And yet, they held their own kind of beauty. He glanced over to Gwen and Arthur to see that they too had grown wings. Arthur had pure gold wings that almost shone in the afternoon sunshine. Gwen's wings were varying shades of brown, which made them appear soft.

The Knights were looking similar in their own wings. Gwaine had pure brown wings which seemed to change shade depending on the way the light hit the feathers; Lancelot's wings were almost the same, but had a lighter shade to them; Leon had wings of such a light brown, they were almost dirty blonde, and had pale orange mixed in; Percival had pure white wings while Elyan had wings of such a dark brown they were almost black, with jet black feathers running through.

They were all coming to and no doubt feeling the pain. 'Well this will be fun to explain' though Merlin with a grimace.

Merlin PoV

'I have a feeling that even though this girl has wings, she can't help us remove ours'

"Hey I'm Merlin by the way, just thought I'd introduce myself. Who are you?"

"I'm Sapphire, nice to meet you Merlin. Or should I say Emrys?" I look at her in shock before answering, "Just Merlin please"

"Okay no problem Merlin, and don't you worry, I already knew your name and I know all of theirs too. I personally know one of them. Look I'm really sorry about the wings but I can't undo that spell. It's permanent. Not even Kilgharrah or Aithusa could remove it or you for that matter Mr All-Powerful-Warlock"

Several groans alerted me and Sapphire that the others were waking up. It was the scream of shock and fear that told us that they had seen their… transformation. Sapphire approached the groups who were now staring either at each other's or their own wings in awe and a twinge of fear and exasperation, "Um hello there, I'm Sapphire. I was trying to prevent this from happening but there was nothing I could do. Sorry. The witch returned to her grave once you were all in the meadow, and there is nothing anyone, not even me, can do to remove this spell. Not even dragons could help you now"

At hearing her name Gwaine's head whipped round, "Sapphire? Is that…you?" everyone looked at Gwaine in shock before her reply caught them of guard, "Hello again Gwaine, good to see you. How have you been?"

Gwaine laughed before walking over and holding his arms out for a hug. Sapphire had a sarcastic smile on her face before she rolled her eyes and hugged him, "Long time no see Princess! I have been fine, but what about you? Last I heard there was some kind of battle?" they broke their hug to look at each other.

"Oh! Yeah that got sorted, it was just a huge misunderstanding and I have been fine, now though I think I should probably teach you how to fly no?"

I look at her in shock, "What now?"

"Yes now Merlin, I can't remove the spell, you can't remove the spell, and something tells me you can't hind the wings either. So, you have got to learn to fly before you return to Camelot, that way, if you go at night, you can land on the roof of the castle and work your way down, rather than cause a storm by riding into Camelot in full view"

That effectively shut everyone up.

It was 2 days later, after many crashes and failures that Sapphire declared us good flyers and in Arthur and Gwaine's case "Exceptionally gifted, almost as if you two were born to fly". We were scheduled to return to Camelot the following morning however it seemed appropriate to return under the full moon of midnight's sky tonight instead, so that the people don't expect them.

Everyone had been quietly packing when Arthur called attention to Sapphire, who was stood on the edge of the cliff staring at the sky, with a small smile of serenity adorned her pale features.

"Do you have anywhere to go or are you a traveller?" Sapphire turned to Arthur with an expression of shock which quickly softened to one of sadness and envy, "No young prince, I have no home to return to, only the wild around us"

"Then I insist you return with us to Camelot. My father doesn't have to know the truth that you're a shape shifter and sorceress, or even you true age. I suspect everyone has formed a bond with you; I know I have. And it would be a shame to say goodbye when we are all good friends. So I ask; would you do us the honour of coming to Camelot with us? We can provide accommodation"

"You are too kind. It would be my pleasure to return with you and an honour to see such a magnificent city, devoid of magic though it is"

And that was how they were in this situation now. They had set off around 10 o'clock and arrived at the edges of Camelot just an hour later. After recovering their strength they had flown to the castle roof, and landed at midnight on the dot. The king and the court physician, Gaius, were engaged in a quiet conversation alone in the throne room, when the doors had quietly opened just as the guard changed to permit the 9 winged beings. Arthur had moved forward and knelt to his father, who recognised him immediately, while the others knelt at the door.

They were currently waiting for a reaction, because just as King Uther had gone to speak, his mouth had dropped opened and his eyes had widened in shock, and he had frozen to the spot.

That had been an hour ago, and even Gaius was still silent.

Sapphire PoV

'Well then, I guess I should intervene a little here'

I ruffled my feathers as the others had dared, discomfort clear in the way I held myself. When the king and physician started and whipped their heads towards me, just as the others did, I gave a small, sheepish smile, "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to disturb anyone"

The king, obviously not in the mood for talking just gave a small reply, "it's fine"

"Um would it be okay if I stretch my, uh…wings my lord? It seems to have cramped up"

"Of course, you may all rise and feel free to move around. Stay in this room though. I must speak with Gaius, we will return in the morning. I trust you will be alright in here?"

There was a simultaneous reply of "Yes sire" before Uther and Gaius leave the room.

The first thing I did was stretch my wings out fully and then hovered in the air to stretch them out. Everyone else did the same, finding it to be a good idea, "Well that went well" you could hear the laughter in my voice and a chorus of laughter follows. It was minutes later when Gaius re-entered the room with food which was being held outside. The fire in the hearth was lit and everyone was settled around it.

Gaius checked over the prince and Merlin, asked if everyone was okay, and asked my name, said goodnight and left. An hour later everyone was asleep with their wings covering them.

It was a routine thing that I woke up first, just as dawn was breaking over the horizon. When I woke the following morning it was still the same, everyone sleeping, although Merlin and Gwen looked like they were regaining consciousness. I opened the windows to let the bird song enter the room before the noisy clatter of the city drowned it out.

I was stood next the wall with my wings opened behind me, hidden from the view of anyone who could see through the window I was staring out of, when the king and Gaius arrived. We all sat at the big table in the middle.

After explaining what happened, Uther looked resigned and then told us that he accepted that there was nothing we could do and that banishing any of us wouldn't help. So he told us that he would announce what had happened to the people later in the day but for now, we were to change. Gwen and I ended up in floor length strapless gowns to accommodate our wings better than cutting holes in the fabric of other dresses. Gwen's was dark purple with lilac designs and white detailing, while mine was an ocean blue that was neither too dark or too light, with sea-green designs and silver detailing. Both dresses were made of silk and the designs were lace while the detail was embroidered on. The guys all ended up in fine black breeches and white tunics with new cow skin boots. The tunics had holes in so their wings could show and move about freely. My hair was combed and someone had brought flowers up, which I carefully weaved into my hair. Underneath our dresses, Gwen and I wore black breeches, so that if we flew over the crowd, we would still be covered.

3 hours later Uther stood on his balcony addressing the general population of Camelot. After telling the story of what had happened, Arthur, who had been stood next to his father, opened his wings for the whole city to see. There was a collective gasp, but no hostility was shown, only awe at the beauty of the wings. Uther stood away from the doors so that first the Knights could go out and then Gwen and I.

After all was said and done, our little group was stood in the courtyard, the occasional curious by passer stopping to ask questions.

* * *

Several Weeks Later

Everything had settled since we had revealed ourselves to the crowd. The people loved us for some reason. A lot happened in the past 3 weeks…

Arthur had finally (Grown a pair) proposed to Gwen, who was ecstatic and was practically glowing with happiness.

Gwaine had done what was considered impossible, and sworn off drink unless there was a special occasion AND had not slipped up since proclaiming this, much to the shock of everyone. What was even more shocking and had caused a few dizzy spells among those who personally knew Gwaine was that he had also sworn off girls proclaiming he had found the one. He wouldn't reveal who it was and said that when they were both ready they would reveal their relationship.

Lancelot had stopped wallowing in his self-pity from lost love and found a very nice girl, who he was planning on proposing to in a few more weeks as long as it lasted proclaiming they were "head over heels" in love with each other.

Percival had finally gained the courage to ask a bar maid he had been eyeing up whether she would court him, to which she had happily replied that she was happy that he asked and it would be an honour.

Leon was now a sky patroller, hoping to see danger before it hit. Everyone took part in this but Leon was the leader and was very happy with his position. When he wasn't in the sky he was training the new knights or practicing flying with everyone but me, Arthur and Gwaine.

Elyan was now the royal blacksmith. If he wasn't patrolling or practising flying manoeuvres, his new forge was where he could be found; guaranteed.

Gwen had told Arthur that she wanted children, much to his surprise. What shocked people more though, was when Arthur promptly fainted after uttering a "That's nice dear" and then realising what she had said.

Uther had fallen ill and was unlikely to live much longer. He had given Arthur and Gwen his blessings and told Arthur that banning magic had been a huge mistake on his part and told him that he was sorry to leave that mess on his hands. Gaius didn't think he would last the week.

Gaius had been tending to Uther since he had fallen ill, and after hearing that Uther saw how wrong he had been and with Merlin's permission, he revealed how Merlin was the most powerful warlock to ever live and that he had been protecting Arthur and Camelot since day 1, promptly taking a few days off his life.

Merlin had been secretly practising magic in the tunnels beneath the castle. I would often help him, having magic myself. He also met a lovely druid girl called Freya, who when found was cursed. Merlin and I had helped out though and now it was optional and she could control the Bastet within. Merlin plans on proposing before the year is out in about two months.

And me; where do I start. I revealed to the public that I also had ears and a tail, twisting it around so that they were put there by an irreversible enchantment. People asked how I had hidden them before I revealed that it was a special pendant. I had helped Arthur with coping with Gwen's want for children, telling him it was necessary for an heir anyway and that what happened with his mother wouldn't happen with Gwen. I had also started a relationship. No one knew yet and until we were ready it would remain that way. Sound familiar? So yeah me and Gwaine kind of hit it off and realised that we loved each other. He saw that I was uncomfortable with his drinking and immediately stopped that and sleeping around. He hasn't slept with anyone since we got back.

So all in all it has been uneventful since we got back. But you never know. After all this is Camelot, capital city of magical attacks. Who knows?

* * *

**A/N- so what do you think? I may do a companion fic or a sequel I don't know yet.**

**Review Please and let me know what you think. I will try and get my other stories done soon, although I may end up deleting How His Life Changed as my imagination has run dry for that. If anyone wants to continue it let me know by review or pm thanks!**

**SapphireMoonbeam xx**


End file.
